Turkish-Style Carrot Salad Recipe with Minty Yogurt Dressing

This Turkish-style carrot salad recipe is spiced with red pepper and garlic, and tossed in a tangy minty yogurt dressing. Enjoy as a side dish to your favorite main, or as part of a traditional Turkish mezze spread. Either way, this carrot salad recipe is a simple way to add more vegetables to every day meals.

Cool and Refreshing Mint

I love using mint in recipes for its cool, refreshing, and sometimes, sweet flavor. I build layers of flavor in this recipe by using dried and fresh mint. Add some chilies for a kick, and yogurt for tang. My favorite yogurt to use is the whole milk European-style yogurt from Strauss Creamery. It has superior flavor, and I prefer the thinner texture as opposed to a Greek (thickened) yogurt.

Minty Yogurt Dressing

Instructions

Heat olive oil over medium low heat in a large saute pan. Add garlic, mint, and red pepper flakes, and cook for 5 minutes, stirring often. Do not allow garlic to brown or burn.

Add carrots, sea salt, and black pepper. Stir to combine, and cook about 5 minutes, until carrots are just starting to soften. Empty pan into a large mixing bowl.

Minty Yogurt Dressing

Combine dressing ingredients in a small bowl and whisk together. Pour over cooked carrots and stir to combine. Refrigerate for 30 minutes to overnight to let the flavors combine. To serve, give a stir and garnish with fresh mint and chili pepper sprinkles.

Notes

*I used dried mint from a teabag (make sure it's only mint!). 1 1/2 teaspoons fresh chopped mint may be used in place of dried.

**If Turkish red pepper flakes are not available, sweet paprika and cayenne pepper can be used to substitute at a ratio of 4:1. In this recipe ~1/3 teaspoon paprika to 1/8 teaspoon cayenne.